When is the deadline for submissions?

Materials must be received in the Los Angeles GLAAD office by Thursday, November 17, 2011 at 6:00 p.m., PT.

What is the eligibility period for submissions?

Projects submitted for the 23rd Annual GLAAD Media Awards must have been published, released, or broadcast in the United States between January 1, 2011 – December 31, 2011.

Why is the submission deadline before the end of the eligibility period?

GLAAD will consider media images which appear between November 17 and December 31, 2011. However, we require that all media projects which appeared before November 17 be submitted by the November 17 deadline.

If you have a project that you know will appear between the deadline and December 31, please contact GLAAD at submissions@glaad.org to make special arrangements for submission.

What media projects are eligible for submission?

Click here for a list of categories and the eligibility parameters for each category.

Who can submit a project for nomination?

Anyone can submit a project for nomination. If you think something should be considered for nomination, you are welcome to submit it.

Must a media project be submitted in order to be nominated?

Mainstream Media – GLAAD monitors mainstream media on a year-round basis as part of our work to fight defamation and promote fair, accurate, and inclusive LGBT images in the media. This monitoring provides a pool of potential nominees for the volunteer juries to review. The volunteer juries may choose to nominate LGBT images from these media outlets – even if the image is not submitted.

Media Outlets Created By and For an LGBT Audience – GLAAD does not monitor media created by and for the LGBT community for defamation – therefore we do not generate a pool of potential nominees. Furthermore, the limited availability and distribution of this media means GLAAD is not physically able to monitor it. Therefore all media outlets which are created by and for the LGBT community must submit their programming and journalism in order for it to be eligible for nomination.

How are nominees selected?

Over 90 volunteers serve on Nomination Juries, with each Jury monitoring a particular form of media. In addition to GLAAD’s own system for monitoring media, a Call for Entries is sent out encouraging media outlets to submit their best work for consideration. Nomination Jury volunteers review more than 1000 projects in both English and Spanish-Language GLAAD Media Awards categories.

What scoring criteria does GLAAD use to judge potential nominees?

All media projects with LGBT images are evaluated using four criteria:

1) Fair, Accurate and Inclusive Representations – Rather than portraying the LGBT community in broad stereotypes, the project deals with the characters or themes in a fair, accurate, and multi-dimensional manner. (This is different than a “positive role model.”) Inclusive means that the diversity of the LGBT community is represented. This includes economic, geographic, and political diversity, as well as people of color, seniors, differently abled people, etc.

2) Boldness and Originality – The project breaks new ground by exploring LGBT subject matter in non-traditional ways and handles the LGBT content in a fresh and original manner. Is this project cutting-edge?

3) Impact – The project impacts society in a significant way. Does this project dramatically increase the cultural dialogue about LGBT issues? Or, does this project reach an audience that is not regularly exposed to LGBT images and issues?

4) Overall Quality – A project of extremely high quality adds impact and significance to the images and issues portrayed. Fair, accurate and inclusive images can sometimes be weakened when they are part of a poor-quality project.

When are the nominees announced?

The nominees will be announced in mid-January 2012. Check www.glaad.org/mediaawards for a press release and a complete list of nominees.

How are award recipients selected?

Over 700 GLAAD Media Awards voters contribute to the selection of award recipients in each category via online balloting. Voters are comprised of three groups: GLAAD staff and board, GLAAD Media Circle members, and GLAAD volunteers & allies (which includes previous Special Honorees, key media industry allies, volunteers from the Nominating Juries, and Event Production teams).

The results from these voters creates a final slate of award recipients, which is then given to GLAAD’s Review Panel for certification. The Review Panel is comprised of the GLAAD Board co-chairs, senior GLAAD program staff, and media industry experts. The members of the Review Panel are expected to view all of the nominees in each category. The final slate of award recipients is certified by the Review Panel, based on the results of the online balloting and their own expert opinions.

When are award recipients announced?

The announcement of award recipients in all categories is withheld until the GLAAD Media Award ceremonies.

GLAAD is committed to keeping our award shows to under a two-hour running time. Even with three award shows, (NY, LA, and San Francisco), there is not enough time to present all of the awards onstage. When deciding which awards to present onstage, we select categories which reflect the range of the GLAAD's work with the media. We choose a mix of entertainment, news, and Spanish-language awards. For the categories that are not given out onstage, we will announce the award recipients in a press release the night of the New York show.

In early-February 2012 GLAAD will announce which award categories will be given out in which cities. Please check our web site for further information.

May I submit through GLAAD’s Web site, or by e-mail and fax?

No. Because entries must be accompanied by supporting materials, all entries must be mailed. The mailing address is located on the entry form, which can be downloaded here.